Follow Along Skin Tone Tutorial and Etsy

Follow Along Skin Tone Tutorial
I have had a few requests for a skin tone tutorial, so I thought I would do one here on my blog, breaking the tutorial up over a few weeks, giving viewers a chance to follow along and share what they accomplished at the end. I will be putting this tutorial up on my web site and DA gallery, when completed.

Materials Needed
Reference photo of a arm ( I am using a reference photo from WC Stock on DeviantArt  http://wc-stock.deviantart.com/ )
8.0" x 11.0" Professional Grade Acid free Drawing Paper (I suggest Rising Stonehenge)
Electric Pencil Sharpener
Eraser
Makeup or drafting brush
Drawing pencil

First 3 Color Pencils Needed

1. Prismacolor Cream PC914
2. Derwent Coloursoft Pale Peach C570
3. Prismacolor Light Peach PC927

Note: Make sure to try and keep your color pencils sharp at all times unless stated otherwise.

Start off first, doing a light sketch of the arm. I made my sketch a little darker than normal, so the scan would pick up the lines. If you make the lines too dark, you can go back and lighten dark pencil marks with an eraser.

Next, apply a layer of Prismacolor Cream over the entire arm, using light to medium pressure. Use medium pressure in areas that are of darker value and light pressure in areas of lightest value.

After that, layer Derwent Coloursoft Pale Peach over the cream, using a light to medium pressure. Using the medium pressure again over the areas that are darker in value and light pressure over the lightest values.

Last, apply a layer of Prismacolor Light Peach, using again light to medium pressure. Using the medium pressure in areas that are darkest in value.

Next week, will pick up from this stage and continue on with the lesson....
If you would like to share or have any questions feel free to comment or email me at info@mooresartgallery.com

Etsy
For those who don't know about Etsy http://www.etsy.com/ , it is a place to buy and sell handmade items. From art to jewelry. You can also buy arts and craft supplies there as well.

I have had a store over at Esty now for a couple of years. I have made a total of 8 sales and just made my ninth sale, last Sunday on May 30th. The only problem with my last sale was, the buyer didn't pay me, til today.  I emailed  the buyer once, prior to this, the day after the initial sell,  notifying them I could not ship out the artwork, until I received payment. No reply. I waited for another 6 days, today, before I sent out the second notice. A policy I keep on Ebay is the buyer has 7 days to pay me, before I report them and re-list the item. Etsy's policy is payment should be made within 3 days, before the seller should take action.

I have been pondering all day, did I handle the situation well with the customer. Communication is important when being the seller. It is important to let the buyer know how much you appreciate the sale and appreciate their interest in your artwork.After all, they might be a returning customer.
However, I find it very interesting, when someone purchases your artwork on Etsy or Ebay, why some people fail to pay the buyer right away. Especially, when payment is directly through Paypal only and once you click on the buy it now button, you go right to Paypal. This has happened to me twice now, when the customer delayed in paying for the item. The first time, the buyer got upset, when I sent a second invoice, but she did let me know when she intended on paying me. This second time, no response at all. How do you handle a customer like that.?
I have done some research and have come up with a list of tips and ways of handling non-paying customers through Etsy and/or Ebay.
I hope this list may help other artists in dealing with customers.

• Specify in your listing or store policy clear expectations - when the payment needs to be received or the payment deadline. Three to seven days is a good time, unless a site policy is already in place.. 

• Specify in your listing what will happen to buyers, if they choose not to pay.

• Communication!  Prompt follow-up and communication is a must through invoice via paypal, etsy or ebay. Your first communication should be a courteous e-mail congratulating and/or thanking the buyer the day the purchase has been made. Let the buyer know the item is packed and ready to ship out as soon as payment is received. 

•  Try providing incentives for buyers to promptly send payments -  Like buy and pay today and get same day shipping.

• If you do not hear anything from the  buyer within 3 days of purchase, attempt another communication follow-up. Again tell the buyer, until payment has been received, you cannot send the item they purchased. Ask the buyer if he or she has plans to pay for the item or not, so that way you can cancel the transaction and re-list the item. 

•  After 7 days or more have passed and you have still not received a payment or any communication, send a final email, explaining to the buyer, that since they have failed to pay for the item within the allotted time frame, they have left you no alternative, but to report as non-payment and cancel the transaction. You might still give them another 24 hour waiting period just to see if you get a response, if not cancel transaction and provide proper feedback for non-payment and non-communication buyer.

A couple of interesting Links on Etsy
Etsy Customer Service Tips - http://www.squidoo.com/etsy-customer-service-tipsEtsy is a Four Letter Word - http://nataliejost.com/3723

Update on new Work In Progress

I hope you all had a great Memorial Day weekend! We went to the movies and saw the Prince of Persia. The movie was okay. It wasn't quite what I anticipated. It kind of reminded me of the Mummy and Aladdin mixed together. It did kind of inspired me to do a drawing one day - kind of based on the theme. Will add it to the list of mile high art projects to do. :D
After the movies, we went to the cemetery to place flowers on my dad's grave and grandparents grave. I think the girls are finally starting to understand what Memorial Day really represents. At least I hope so. So many strong and brave soldiers have fought for our freedom and I thank God for them. I pray that the Lord will bless them and their families.

Here is the latest update on Alice. It's taking me a little bit longer than anticipated to complete and I have taken a couple days break from it and I will now finish adding final details etc. today or tomorrow. I keep saying I am going to finish it, and then something will interrupt the drawing process or I find something I need to work on more :)

Also,  I have some new listings up at my Etsy store you can view them here http://mooresart.etsy.com/
Some of my limited edition prints of ACEOs are available there now. I hope to be adding more this week, if time will allow.

I just discovered this on Nicole Caulfied's blog. Google Street Maps http://maps.google.com/help/maps/streetview/
You can pan through cities or towns all over the world. Many artists are starting to use it as a reference tool for drawing backgrounds, landscapes etc. So I am off to go check out Ireland, Scotland and England. This is so cool!

Alice -- Work in Progress

Still working on Alice. I was hoping to get her done this week, but too many things going on. So hopefully today I can finish it up.  I really wanted to participate in Ellen Millions May Sketch Fest today, but no time. http://community.livejournal.com/emglivejournal/3255.html Maybe next year :)

Alice is done in color pencil. I am using mainly Prismas with some Derwent Coloursofts and some  Lyra Rembrandts. The paper is Canson Mi Tientes and it is 6.0" x 8.0"  This piece is part of my new fairy tale series, based on Grimm Fairy Tales and Disneys.

New Work In Progress, Scams and Seminar

New Work In Progress
I had to share my latest work in progress. Color pencil on Canson Mi Tientes. I normally complete the hair first, but I had to put it on hold as I ran out of some greys I needed.
Its the first of my new fairy tale series. This one is inspired by Disney's latest movie "Alice In Wonderland" with Johnny Depp, and Avril Lavigne's new song "Alice". Reference photo by the beautiful Aline Potter http://alinepotter-stock.deviantart.com/  I am hoping to get it finished up this week, so I can start on a new piece for the "Picture Yourself in Wonderland" contest  being put on by Walt Disney Studios. I don't know if I am going to have enough time or not, as the deadline is June 4th. Going to give it a try though, that is if  I can find the right reference photo, for what I am envisioning.
http://news.deviantart.com/article/117360/

Scams
It's pretty scary for all the artists out there in cyberworld at the moment, with all the scams, identity theft, and art theft going on on the internet. I think I receive at least 5 scams a month of people wanting to buy my artwork, but are not legit.
Purchase Scams,  Phishing Scams, Nigerian Art Scam and Gallerie Scams are just some of the type of scams that artists receive monthly. Now the latest type of scam is a student emailing to you tell you, that they are wanting to write a report on you and need some personal information - Phishing.

Here are some warnings and ways to protect yourself from becoming the next victim.

• Avoid emails inquiring about purchasing your artwork that have bad spelling, bad English and vague inquiries.
• Avoid ever giving out any personal information, such as Social Security number, place of birth, passwords, names of your children, mother's maiden name, pet's name and so on.
• Red warning lights should go off, if someone is offering to send you a money order, a cashier's or corporate check in an amount that is greater than the purchase price of your artwork.
• Never ship an artwork out, til the check clears, especially if the purchaser is located outside of your country.
• Insist that you only take payments through Paypal. No money orders or cashier checks. Put the Paypal logo up on your website, as it tends deter predators.
• Avoid Vanity Galleries and Vanity Publications that charge expensive fees. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vanity_gallery and  http://www.artcalendar.com/article.asp?ID=145
•  Check galleries and businesses out through the Better Business Bureau or Chamber of Commerce to make sure they are legit.
• Avoid emails from Nigeria period.
• Avoid emails about art awards or art grants, unless you requested the information.
• If you are a victim of fraud, contact the  Internet Fraud Complaint Center http://www.ic3.gov/ or go to http://www.ftc.gov

Help spread the word about these type of scams and identity theft to help protect other artists.

Seminar
Ann Kullberg has a new seminar that I would really LOVE to attend "The Teacher in YOU Training" seminar. Time to start saving up! You can check out the details here if you are interested  http://annkullberg.com/teacherseminar.php

Miniature Artwork

It's been a challenging past week for me,  I have been working on what I call, my very first miniature work of art, of a black tail deer.  I have much more to learn and much more practicing to do, but I am on my way and I have joined a great group, full of some amazing talented artists http://groups.yahoo.com/group/miniatureart/
I used watercolor and color pencil to do this piece and used my own reference photos. It's 2.5" x 3.5"

You might say, "Well that's the same size as an ACEO and what's so challenging about that?" A lot!  A miniature work of art is a specialty art and has layers of  more fine details,  than an ACEO.  Miniature artwork can range in size from 1.0" x 1.0" to 5.0" x 7.0".  They are to be no more than 1/6th scale of the actual subject and specific art guidelines are to be met with each association.    
Working in color pencil at such a small of scale and fine of detail can be quite challenging as the color pencil tips can break easy and you have got to keep your points sharp at all times. I am thinking, Prismacolor verithins,  might work better for such small of detail, only problem is, the verithins do not have a wide range of colors available, but I plan on testing them out on my next piece.

Some amazing miniature art can be seen at Wes and Rachel Siegrists' site  http://www.artofwildlife.com/

They have two books out "Exquisite Miniatures" and "The World of Nature in Miniature" located here

http://www.artofwildlife.com/miniature_painting_books.html 

Take a look around at their galleries, their works will just blow you away. Truly inspiring, blessed and talented artists.

ACEOs

Continuing on with the topic of ACEOs from my last post....

To me, an artist must have good marketing skills, in order to survive out in this crazy economy (something I am still working on). My number one challenge this week, was researching ACEOs, and finding out more about how to market the type of ACEOs  I wanted to sell.   I know I will still face difficult challenges, even after all this research, but at least now, I know what I need to strive for, in order to become successful at selling ACEOs or any art for that matter, on eBay or even Etsy.

Well, I did a little researching on ACEOs (Art Card Edition and Originals),  when I first started creating them about 3 years ago. Recently, I have done even more researching.  Here's what I have learned.

The History

The ACEO movement was basically started by a gal named Lisa Luree in 2004.  She created a group on eBay to help promote the creation and sales of ACEOs.  “She started the ACEO movement, in response to the prohibition against selling what was associated with ATCs”, which is Artist Trading Cards.   Artist Trading Cards, originated in Switzerland .  They are always traded, not sold, and are the same size as an ACEO, 2.5” x 3.5”.   ATCs were originally used as an artist training tool.   Artists would exchange with one another, in order to learn each others' techniques and styles.

ACEOs, on the other hand, were created to sell on eBay and other art auction sites.  The goal is to put them into the hands of customers, who are willing to offer the highest bid or price.  The higher the bid, the better for the artist, and the more value or worth of the artist's art goes up.  Selling ACEOs on eBay, also gives the artist's followers and collectors, a chance to own something original that they created.  And the ACEO movement started an artist/collector craze out of this world.  Every artist starting creating ACEOs and the collectors came out full force.  And then the tanking of the economy began to hit in the later part of 2008. Selling ACEOs slowed down for many artists and completely for some, but the well known artists continued to sell their ACEOs really well and at high bids.

Being Successful at Selling ACEOs

I have learned a lot this past week about ACEOs, some things I did not know before, other things I did. I have gathered up some tips, that I would like to share with all the artists out there.

1. 
   
   
   Sell original ACEOs. What do I mean? Make them original, one of a kind. Create something that no other artist has tried yet, and see what sparks it creates.
2. 
   
   
   Make your listings and auction pages original. Create a auction page and listing that is going to grab the bidders attention, yet be professional looking as well. Make sure there is enough information in the description and that the image of the art is good quality.
3. 
   
   
   Make sure the back of the ACEO has the following information – full signature of the artist, date, title, medium, website or email, print number, and © symbol. You can check out my tutorial here on how I create the backings for my ACEOs http://mooresart.deviantart.com/art/ACEO-Tutorial-158327473
4. 
   
   
   Never start your bids lower than $4.99 and definitely not at .99 cents. It is usually a red flag warning for most serious art collectors, that you do not value your own work as an artist.
5. 
   
   
   Make sure you pack and ship your ACEO well. Keep it professional. Place your ACEOs in either penny sleeves or penny envelopes with a backing of some kind. Never post shipping costs higher than $3.00. Ship in a timely manner. I always ship mine in a 6” x 8” mailer. I always include a packaging slip, a business card, a thank you on the slip and a certificate of authenticity, if it is a print. I always try to ship it out, just as soon as I receive payment. Something I just discovered, is try creating a handmade decorative envelope to place the ACEO in. Tie with ribbon or raffia. The template is located here http://www.ruthannzaroff.com/mirkwooddesigns/atcenvelope.htm
6. 
   
   
   Keep a record of all sales. Record name, address, and email. Send out notices to the people on the sales record, when you have a new listing.
7. 
   
   
   If selling prints, make sure they are good quality inks and on good quality paper. I have been getting some of my prints at http://www.artcardswanted.com/prints.cfm
8. 
   
   
   Once you have sold a few ACEOs and ACEO prints (50+), try opening up an eBay store. The price of listings is way cheaper, than per auction page.
9. 
   
   
   Check out your competition! See what other artists are starting their bids at. See how they design their listings and pages. See how they design and create their ACEOs. But DO NOT COPY.
10. 
    
    
    Advertise! Spread the word around, that you have got a new ACEO up for bid on eBay. Let followers know, if you have a special going on, or if a certain percentage of the sale is going to a specific donation, such as the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.

Not all artist are successful at selling ACEOs, but I think if you use these tips you can be.  A true art collector and follower will pay the price no matter what it is, to acquire your works.  These are the people we “artists” need to be true to, need to promote to, need to say thank you to.  If it weren't for the fans and collectors, most artists wouldn't have their works hanging on walls or in a book on a coffee table.

By the way,  I  just had to share my latest news.  I just sold my very first ACEO print! "Bridge to Paradise"

I am awaiting payment, but I am very excited.

Thank you all for your support!

A Struggling Artist Introductory

So, what is thiis blog all about? If I had to sum it up in a few sentences, it's about the disappointments and successes, in trying to make it as an artist, in today's ever changing economy. It's about sharing information, tips, ideas, sites, techniques, and  discover ways to help out other struggling artists.  It's about my journey on becoming the successful artist of my dreams and to help other artists achieve their dreams too.

I am literally what one would call the "Struggling Starving Artist". We basically live from paycheck to paycheck, which doesn't leave me a whole lot to buy art supplies or to enter many exhibitions or contests. Why?  I quit my part-time job a little over 2 years ago, to help care for my dad, who was dying from cancer. I decided, after he passed away,  I really wanted to try to make a go with my art full-time,  plus the kids, and health reasons were really preventing me from wanting to go back to elderly care/housekeeping profession. I am happy with my decision, as I get to be a stay-at-home mom, plus I get to work on my artwork, when I want to. 

So my journey began. It started off pretty good, as my friend, Jillian Crider,  introduced me to ACEOs (Art Cards, Editions and Originals). I sold quite a few on ebay, but then the economy started to tank and I started having a hard time selling anything on ebay or etsy.  The economy has improved some,  but I am still struggling to sell any works. So I am thinking 1) I need to improve more on my marketing skills 2)I need to improve my skills as an artist and 3) I need to discover that unique niche that most well known artists have, that could launch my art career. My passion is my art, and my expertise is color pencil. It's finding that special niche and concentrating on sticking with and creating 1 to 3 genres and targeting specific audiences. So my journey continues....

I just created a poll at my Deviant Art Page "What do you want to see me draw/paint more of?" If you are on DA please stop on by and vote
http://mooresart.deviantart.com/journal/poll/1154487/ 

Faith

 I created this piece just before my dad passed away in December 2007. When I created Faith, I poured my heart and soul into it, literally cried tears while working on it. It never won any competitions, but this piece reminds me to never give up, to always have faith and hope.